App That Allows You To Take Pictures And Add Filters Responds To Consumer Complaints!

CLEVELAND – Instagram is yet another company responding to consumer sentiment about policy changes. Earlier this week, the app changed the language in its terms and conditions making it seem like the company would be free to use your photos for advertisements. This led people to delete their Instagram account. The company said late Tuesday it’s not selling your photos and will update its language to make its intentions more clear.

The company wrote on its blog, “Since making these change, we’ve heard loud and clear that many users are confused and upset about what the changes mean.”

Instagram said it updated its terms so it could experiment with innovative advertising. The company said that was interpreted as a way to sell photos to others without compensation. The company said that’s not their intention, and apologized for confusing language.

Here’s the example Instagram gave for the reasoning behind the new language: “Let’s say a business wanted to promote their account to gain more followers and Instagram was able to feature them in some way. In order to help make a more relevant an useful promotion, it would be helpful to see which of the people you follow also follow this business. In this way, some of the data you produce – like the actions you take (eg, following the account) and your profile photo – might show up if you re following this business.”

The company is also removing some language to make it clear your photos won’t be sold. You own the photos you take with the app.